For Starters
by Tomy
Summary: He held up a hand trying to keep a tight lid on his temper. "Bon, I'm tired and no longer in the best of moods. But if Kitt can put up with me cursing under his hood, I can have us on the road later today."


Disclaimer: Do you see Mi sitting here? Is Kitt outside? Nope, still not mine

Authors Notes: Set early third season with a few spoilers for second season. Thanks and love to Knightshade for the beta and to Asp for letting me watch him/help him/listen to him curse up a storm as he switched the starter on Rage last sumer. Damn I miss that car!

For Starters  
by Tomy

With a last look around the motel room, Michael grabbed his duffle bag off the bed and headed out. One week of driving to get here, two weeks of investigation, three more days of follow up and now he could finally head home.

Closing the door gently behind him, Michael turned to face the car parked not five feet away and smiled. He and Kitt had a running chess game to complete during the trip home, plus he'd just purchased a book on politics that he was sure would grab Kitt's attention - though he was truly interested in learning this aspect of their work himself. He'd been out manoeuvered far too many times by politics and it was irking him to no end.

Tapping the spoiler lightly with his fingers, he waited for Kitt to pop the trunk.

"Let me just return the room key and then we'll be off, Partner."

Kitt's response was a definite, almost relieved swish of the scanner. Michael smiled again as he lowered the hatch waiting for the motorised latch to catch.

Dropping heavily into the plush seat not five minutes later, Michael closed his eyes against the glare of the morning sun on his face. He was dog tired, and it was a long way before he could sleep in his own bed. Though he did sleep better inside Kitt's cabin - an insecurity he'd never admit to.

"Miles to go, Michael?" There was a teasing tone to Kitt's voice.

He only smirked as he reached for the ignition switch.

His actions were met with a ominous click.

"Aw, no. Come on, Baby." He pressed the switch again. The click sounded once more from under the hood.

"Oh Dear." Oh yeah, Kitt was obviously pissed by this turn of events. "This is highly embarrassing."

"Starter, right, Kitt?"

After a brief hesitation, he got his answer. "Yes, Michael."

"Get me Bonnie." A few seconds later Bonnie's face appeared on the monitor.

"Michael," her face lit up, then clouded. "What's wrong?"

He sighed, not looking forward to having his ass in a sling for something he had no control over. "Looks like the starter's out."

"What?! Michael, are you sure?"

"Yes, Bonnie." Kitt saved Michael from having to answer.

"We're almost home," she complained. "Why couldn't you have told me..."

"Bonnie," exasperation coloured Michael's voice, stopping her tirade. "I just got in the car to head home. There's been no sign of trouble until this point, give me a break, uh?!"

"Michael's right. If there had been any malfunction previously in my starter, I would have informed you immediately." Michael silently thanked his partner for siding with him - whether that information was purely to save his butt or not, he was not about to question it.

"It's going to take the semi another week to get back to you."

"Is Kitt's starter any different from a typical Trans Am's?"

"Why..?" she was looking at him suspiciously, which he hated to admit was grating on his nerves.

"Bon, I've been a car buff for as long as I can remember. I've been toying with cars since I was old enough to work a wrench. I've replaced at least a hundred starters in my time." Her eyes narrowed at him. "If I can get to the starter, I can replace it. Just tell me what I need since I don't have a toolbox with me."

"Michael, are you...."

He held up a hand trying to keep a tight lid on his temper. "Bon, I'm tired and no longer in the best of moods. But if Kitt can put up with me cursing under his hood, I can have us on the road later today."

"You're more than welcome under my hood, Michael. You know that." There was a hitch to Kitt's voice that caused alarm bells to sound off in Michael's head.

Instead he aimed an affectionate smile at the modulator, knowing Kitt and Bonnie were watching him.

Bonnie threw up her hands. "All right," she conceded. "Actually, with Kitt's design, you'll find the starter easier to access from under the car, You'll need an 11 millimeter for the header bolts, an 8 mil for the negative wire nut and a 10 millimeter wrench for the positive wire nut, a 9/16ths socket with an extension for the starter bolts, header gaskets, and let me check those measurements. I don't look anymore, I just know which to grab."

Michael laughed, "we're not going anywhere."

Bonnie rolled her eyes.

* * *

Michael strolled back into the now empty parking lot at noon. He'd informed the owner of the motel of his problem, and asked if he could work on the car in the parking area.

To which the man enthusiastically replied, "Not a problem, man. If that were my car, I wouldn't trust anyone else under the hood either. You can leave that beaut in my sights all day if you like."

Michael chuckled hoping he wasn't overstepping his boundaries by working on the state-of-the-art Trans Am. There was a part of him that was terrified of working on Kitt's body. Any other car would have been a piece of cake, but Kitt was a completely different matter.

"Hey, Pal, can you jack yourself up please?" Without a word, Kitt's suspension lifted, his tyres over inflating to make room for Michael under the car. Michael frowned. "Kitt, is something wrong?"

"No, Michael." The answer was abrupt. The frown deepened.

"Kitt...??" Oh yea, something was wrong all right. "Do you not trust me?"

"This has nothing to do with trust."

"Then what does it have to do with?" he asked gently not wanting to start a war.

"I... You've insisted time and again how you do not understand the workings of my components."

"Kitt, that's the computer stuff I don't get. Aside from the full technicalities of your turbines, I can could probably pull your engine out, tear it apart and put it back together again."

"Shall we not test that theory."

"Dammit, Kitt! Why didn't you say something sooner then?" Michael placed the bag with tools and parts beside the passenger front tyre. "Didn't I jerry-rig your turbines to get us out of the desert?"

"Well, yes."

"Then what? You now want to go back on what you told Bonnie?"

"No, not exactly...."

"Kitt, you can monitor everything I do under here. Trust me."

"I do trust you, but...."

"But you don't want me under your hood." Now he was angry, and though he kept his voice down he made sure his actions and tone let Kitt know just how mad, and disappointed he was. "You have no choice here, Kitt. You said to Bonnie that I'm welcome under your hood. It's too late for second thoughts."

Fuming, Michael couldn't be bothered to ask Kitt to pop the hood. He stalked to the door, barely restraining himself from yanking it open to reach inside for the hood release. He did slam the door on the way back out. Kitt had already flipped the latch, leaving the hood ajar for him to open.

Frustrated and pissed off to begin with, Michael leaned in, grabbing the tool he required from the bag before beginning on unbolting the headers. As the time wore on and the headers came off simply, Kitt boosted himself up enough for Michael to work from underneath - the wire bolts came undone with only a small amount of brute strength, Michael found himself enjoying the work. His Trans Am had been a bitch to work on. The parts were only checked up on for regular maintenance -- not like Kitt, who's every aspect, from engine, turbines, CPU, to body were gone over with a fine tooth comb at least once a week. Thus the bolts turned, the wires slid through the sheath with a small tug, the starter came off and the new one fit like a glove - no spacer shims required as Bonnie suggested he might need.

"I have yet to hear a curse from under there," Kitt commented an hour later as Michael was fitting the new header gaskets.

"I have to tell ya, Kitt, you're a joy to work under." The smile was obvious in his voice, showing no signs of the earlier stress.

"I have to admit I'm impressed with your efficiency."

Michael popped his head around the open hood as he tightened the first bolt. "Is that a compliment, Kitt? From you? Be still my beating heart." Now he was outright laughing.

Michael was sure he heard Kitt muttering about facetious drivers.

The last bolt checked and tightened, Michael shimmied from under the fender using the ground effects paneling to help him slide out. Stretching, he walked to the driver's side door, trying not to cover the handle in grease as he pulled it open. He made as if he were reaching for the keys, "Give her, Kitt."

The engine turned over on the first attempt. "Michael, I'm speechless."

His driver smirked proudly. "The headers holding the back pressure?"

"I'll need a moment to flush my systems. But so far, all readings check out."

"Good, I'll start picking up then." Leaving the door slightly ajar, Michael reached under, listening for any suspicious noises. If nothing else, all the hours inside the car left him with a familiarity of Kitt's systems. He knew all the noises - the shocks as they hit a rough spot on the road as compared to those as they landed from a turbo boost. The soft whine of the turbines, the guttural rumble of the mufflers - and it was all sounding right to his ears.

Placing the dirty tools in the plastic bag, he moved over to the door again. "Kitt?"

"All systems go, Michael." Kitt's tone was happy, almost buoyant in his enthusiasm.

"Pop the trunk then, please." Tucking the tools and old starter in, he grabbed an old towel which he used to wipe off the fender and then the door handle, making sure Kitt was pristine clean again. "Let me wash up and we'll be on our way."

"Michael....?" The hesitant question stopped him in his tracks.

Turning back, Michael dropped into the seat. "Yeah, Kitt?"

"I am sorry."

A smile quirked the side of his lips. "Nothing to apologise for, Partner. I was worried I'd overstepped my boundaries for a bit there."

"I'll never doubt you again."

Michael let out a bark of laughter. "Oh yes you will!" With that he climbed out of the car, hearing Kitt shut off the engine as he closed the door with his hip.

All teasing aside, Michael glanced back at the silent form of his partner, the slowly tracking scanner catching his eye, making him smile genuinely. The scanner flashed on full before resuming it's gentle motion. Even three years later, they could still make inroads into their friendship. Today being the largest one in quite sometime.


End file.
